Adjustable top drain and seal

ABSTRACT

In a roof drain comprising a top inlet portion as an adjustable collar having a male-threaded downward extension adjustably engaged in a female-threaded bowl or body and received in a caulking recess defined by an upward cylindrical body flange surrounding the bowl outlet and coaxially spaced from the cylindrical interior of the collar extension, a collar-to-body seal is provided by a resilient elastomeric sleeve gasket comprising a cylindrical body, a heavy top inward lip having a sloped underface sealingly engaged with a top edge of the caulking flange, a set of three spaced upwardly sloped circumferential thin inside fins under the lip making further sealing and gasket-retaining contact with the caulking flange exterior surface, and a set of four upwardly sloping heavy triangular ribs, making sealing contact with the collar interior surface and enabling vertical collar adjustment while the gasket is retained in the recess by the fins.

United States Patent Flegel et a].

July s, 1975 ADJUSTABLE TOP DRAIN AND SEAL Primar Examiner-Charles N. Hart 751 t :G .F] I,Mh Ct, y l nven Ors ifi i g fi g iii Assistant ExaminerR1chard W. Burks Mic;1 Attorney, Agent, or FirmP. D. Golrick [73] Assignee: Josam Manufacturing Co., Michigan City, Ind. [5 ABSTRACT [22] Filed; O t. 31, 1973 In a roof drain comprising a top inlet portion as an adjustable collar having a male-threaded downward ex- [21] Appl' 4l1447 tension adjustably engaged in a female-threaded bowl or body and received in a caulking recess defined by [52] US. Cl 210/166; 210/460 an upward cylindrical body flange surrounding the [51] Int. Cl B01d 23/00 bowl outlet and coaxially spaced from the cylindrical [58] Field of Search 52/11-16; in e i r f h ll extension, a ccllar-to-body s l is 210/163466, 460 463; 277/209 212 provided by a resilient elastomeric sleeve gasket comprising a cylindrical body, a heavy top inward lip hav- [56] References Cited ing a sloped underface sealingly engaged with a top UNITED STATES PATENTS edge of the caulking flange, a set of three spaced upwardly sloped circumferential thin inside fins under 22:32: gg 32 the lip making further sealing and gasket-retaining 2 283 160 5 1942 Boose l:II::IZIIIIIIIIII: 210/163 with the caulking flange exterim Surface and 2:672:205 3 1954 McDonald 210/163 a Set of four upwardly sloping heavy triangular ribs, 2,896,974 7/1959 Bush 277/209 x aking s aling onta t with the collar interior surface 3,165,324 1/1965 Zopfi 277/209 and enabling vertical collar adjustment while the gas- 3,529,723 9/1970 Hagedorn 210/163 ket is retained in the recess by the fins.

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 6 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures 1,044,037 ll/l958 Germany 210/163 18 2o l I J I I I I I I C 180 I I l I R B r 16 130 j I I J12 l D I ADJUSTABLE TOP DRAIN AND SEAL Roof and floor drains of various configurations have been long known comprised of a body anchored in the drain environment structure and having an outlet connected to drainage piping. and a top with a downward extension vertically adjustably engaged, for example, by threading within the body, so that after roughing-in of the drain body, the top or inlet of the drain may be closely adjusted for the intended level of the surface to be drained.

Especially in the roof drains of this type, a coursethreaded engagement between the adjustable top and the body has been sealed by providing an internal upward flange spaced from the body female threads sufficiently not only to accommodate the adjustable top but also to form a recess for receiving asphaltic, mastic or other caulking material emplaced from above through the inlet opening after the top level has been set.

Even where the caulking has been of such composition and characteristics that no heating or mixing is required for its application and a good seal is obtainable, nonetheless the prior caulking practices for sealing the adjustable top have entailed various disadvantages. Thus the caulking combination is stocked in closed buckets in comparatively large quantity, though at times in cartridges each sufficient for but a few drains. Consequently there is need to transfer the viscous fluid or semi-solid material of the seal composition from the container for filling it into a gun or directly into the caulking recess, else the use of a cartridge caulking gun.

Obviously it would be advantageous to eliminate the requirement for particular tools for the job, the cleanup of tools after work completion, and in general to obviate the disadvantage of working with gummy or tacky quite viscous caulking material and, as well, of stocking the same.

By the present invention, hereinafter particularly disclosed, there is provided an adjustable drain and sealing gasket combination, which provides for an adjustable drain of the type described in effect a gasket caulking element which is quickly and readily insertable, permits the vertical adjustment to some degree even after emplacement of the gasket, and avoids the several disadvantages of the various type caulking compositions as previously used for this purpose.

It is the general object of the present invention to provide an adjustable drain of the type described in combination with a novel gasket sleeve to seal the adjustable members and thereby obviate certain disadvantages of prior caulking practices.

Another object is the provision of a gasket sealing sleeve, for a drain of the type described, of relatively simple structure, which is readily installable while attaining a good seal.

Other objects and advantages will appear from the following description and the drawings wherein:

FIG. 1 is a vertical section through the combination of an adjustable roof drain with the sealing gasket in place;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary view of the sealing gasket in axial, vertical section; and

FIGS. 3 and 4 are enlarged fragmentary vertical sections showing the gasket sealed region for the lowermost and uppermost drain collar adjustments.

In the drawings, the present invention is shown as embodied in a roof drain comprising an adjustable collar or inlet top portion C supporting an inlet strainer dome S, a drain body B, and a sealing gasket G; the collar and the body hereinafter described representing a usually cast iron structure well known in the art for adjustable roof drains, wherein the adjustable connection between collar and body is ordinarily sealed by asphalt, mastic, or other similar sealing compositions in the caulking recess R to be described.

In the drain body B, as an integral cast structure comprising a bowl portion having a bottom wall 11, sloping to an outlet 12 with a threaded or other suitable connection to a drain pipe D, and a female-threaded vertical or side wall 13 terminating in a circumferential flange 14, a so-called caulking flange 16, generally cylindrical, is disposed coaxially in spaced relation to the bowl wall 13, and about the drain bottom outlet. i.e.. about the vertical axis of the bowl. Thus the so-called caulking-receiving recess R is defined with the bowl wall, more exactly speaking, with the inside round cylindrical surface of the collar downward tubular extension 18, externally round male-threaded at 18a for a loose threading vertically adjustable engagement with the similar body male roll threads 13a, whereby the top surface of the collar rim or flange portion 20 may be adjusted to the desired appropriate level to receive and support at proper level roofing material or flashing usually overlapping and secured to the collar rim.

The securing means for roofing, the strainer dome, the means for anchoring the body in environmental building structure, and details of the omitted roof are not here described, as being conventional and not required to be detailed for understanding of the invention.

The gasket G is fabricated, by molding or other appropriate process, from a suitable tough resilient elastomeric material such a neoprene or polyvinyl chloride, of appropriate hardness and other characteristics as known in the gasket art, in the form of a sleeve. It may be considered as comprised of a cylindrical or sleevelike body portion 24 provided with a set of at least three generally similar external circumferential ribs 25, a heavy top inner lip 26 having an upwardly inwardly sloping or beveled surface 26a engageable with the top end of the flange 16 in a preferred manner to be described, and a set of at least three generally similar internal flns 27 below the lip 26.

For convenience of reference the first-inserted or leading bottom end is considered as the front of the gasket, from which the ribs are ordinally ennumerated; and hereinafter angular designations of the respective surfaces are given in terms of the angles made, relative to the longitudinal lines of the basically rectangular section (corresponding to the postulated basic cylindrical sleeve body portion), by the lines corresponding to the respective surfaces as appearing at a local vertical or axial cross-section through the gasket ring.

Also in general relative to the body and collar portions of the drain, when for simplicity surfaces are designated as generally cylindrical or in similar terms, it is to be understood that in fact there may be, at one surface or another, a slight divergence from cylindrical as may be required for pattern draft or the like purposes by foundry molding practice or plastic molding practice, unless the context or explicit statement requires otherwise.

gasket shape, that the ribs 25 as projections from the external surface of the assumed body portion, are ofcssentially similar triangularcross-section, with the lower or front surface or face 25f sloping back at an angle of about 30: from, and the back surface 2517 at right angles to, the'body in the three lower ribs 25; the top rib '25 usually having its front surface or underface somewhat more abruptly sloped on the order of 50.

As seen in the drawings, the ribs 25 in the outer set are upwardly offset from the respective internal fin type ribs 27, occupying roughly at their area of attachment to the body a space somewhat overlapping, as it were, the projected locations of the grooves to be found above each of the inner ribs; here the third inner rib being more closely spacedto the second than the second relative to the first inner rib.

The sloping undersurface of the lip 26 intersects the gasket body portion at an angle of about 60, and projects in toward thegasket axis about 2 /2 times the radial; amount of the projection of the ribs 27 therebeneath. In the three inner ribs 27, the front surface 27f makes a slope angle of say about 35 relative to-the body, the back surface 271; runs in on the order of 45 to form a re-entrant angle with the body, and a tip area 27fbetween front and back surfaces, seen in the section, extends at a right angle to the sloping front surface.

To allow gasket easy initial introduction, especially when the collar is in extreme upward adjustment, the gasket body" thickness is made appreciably smaller than the gap to be expected fora given drain design, considering the draft and tolerances specifiedor anticipated for casting fabrication of the drain especially as between'the outside convex portion of the flange l6 and the inner surface of the top collar extension 18.

When the gasket is in place, of-course, some compression of the external and internal ribs .results to obtain a plurality of lines or regions of circumferential sealing by the external ribs 25 with the interior of the collar,,and by the internal ribs 27 with the exterior-of the caulking-flange; and the sloping bottom surface of the lip 26 makes, with the top of the flange 16, the sea first encountered by flowing water.

Preferably the outer margin 16 of the topflangel6 has a small radius though with the top otherwise flat, so that a line contact is approached. In any event, at least there is generally a clearance to each side from a region of minimum area contact between the top'end of l6 relative to the undersurface 260, so that locally a higher deforming pressure and sealing engagement is obtain able, more readily accommodating some irregularity of casting, though, of course, an entirely rounded top end of the flange would be conducive to the same purpose.

- The primary sealgenerally is provided by the topin- Though the three top external ribs provide excellent seal and the bottommost fourth rib 25 is unused (see FIG. 4) when the collar is in uppermost position, the latter comes into sealing contact when the collar is ad- 5 justed downwardly and provides an additional seal ternal and external'fins 25, 26, but lower fins in addition to stabilizing the gasket in its installed portion also give added assurance of sealing. Generally at least two internal and two external fins are thus to be used, though three would be preferred.

which may be important where relative recession of the collar inner surface and top region of the flange, due to draft plus tolerance, might happen to increase the collar to flange gap at the upper region and so diminish sealing effect of an upper external rib by loss of a desired gasket compression at that region.

In addition to sealing by the disclosed shapes, the flexible inner fins or ribs with re-entrant back form are particularly resistive to relative motion between collar and gasket, i.e., pull out from the collar after final driving into place; while in the case of the external ribs or fins these enable more ready upward and downward adjustment of the collar without need to remove the gasket.

With this drain and seal combination, the body is roughed in as usual and thereafter, at appropriate time when the collar is set at the requisite height, the gasket is started in and forced down to final position with lip 26 stopped in firm contact with the top margin of flange 16; for example, as need be, by working around its circumference with a hammer and a driving tool similar to a caulking tool, with the tool having engagement in the preferably present groove 28.

In this process, of course, the inner and outer ribs are deformed more or less in' compression not only to develop and maintain sealing contact, but also develop a self-retaining or self-holding force by the frictional engagement of the gasket in the angular recess between the telescoped portions 18 and 16.

What is claimed is:

1. In a combination, with a roof drain comprising, as a top inlet portion, an adjustable collar having a malethreaded downward annularly cylindrical extension vertically adjustably threadedly engaged in a femalethreaded bowl as a drain bottom portion having a drain outlet, the bowl having an annular caulking recess receiving the bottom end of the threaded extension, said recess being defined by an upwardly open cylindrical integral bowl caulking flange coaxially spaced inwardly from the female-threaded bowl portion and circumferentially joined to the bowl below the bottom end of the female thread thereof, said flange being coaxially spaced also from the cylindrical interior of the collar extension; I

a collar-to-b'owl seal provided by a resilient elastomeric sleeve gasket, said gasket comprising a cylindrical body,

a heavy. continuous inward peripheral lip projecting from the top end of the body inwardly over, and having an undersurface continuously sealingly engaged with, a top edge of the said caulking flange,

a set of at least two upwardly sloped, circumferentially continuous, internal thin fins axially spaced on said body under the said lip, and

Y a set of at least two upwardly sloping, heavy circumferentially continuous external ribs axially spaced on said body, said sets making sealing contacts respectively with the flange exterior and collar interior cylindrical surfaces.

2. In the combination of claim 1,

the said undersurface being upwardly outwardly sloped from said body.

3. In the combination of claim 2,

said internal fins having sections thinner than, and rendering them more flexible than, said external ribs;

and having base regions of union with the body axially offset from the base regions of the external ribs.

4. In the combination of claim 2,

said gasket having the topmost said external rib disposed at a location generally opposite said inward lip, top faces of the topmost external rib and of said lip being in effect coplanar extensions of a gasket body top end face,

said end face having a substantially continuous circumferential groove.

5. In the combination of claim 2,

said gasket having thin flexible edge portions on said ribs and fins.

6. In the combination of claim 5,

the base regions. of union with the body. of the fins and ribs being axially offset from opposition to each other;

said ribs each having a triangular cross section defined by an upwardly outwardly sloping undersurface and a top surface perpendicular to said body; and

said fins each having upwardly inwardly sloping top and bottom surfaces terminating at a blunt fin end;

whereby the external ribs permit up and down adjustment of the collar, while the fins assure retention of the sleeve gasket in said recess. 

1. IN A COMBINATION, WITH A ROOF DRAIN COMPRISING, AS A TOP INLET PORTION, AN ADJUSTABLE COLLAR HAVING A MALE-THREADED DOWNWARD ANNULARLY CYLINDRICAL EXTENTION VERTICALLY ADJUSTABLY THREADEDLY ENGAGED IN A FEMALE-THREADED BOWL AS A DRAIN BOTTOM PORTION HAVING A DRAIN OUTLET, THE BOWL HAVING AN ANNULAR CAULKING RECESS RECEIVING THE BOTTOM END OF THE THREADED EXTENSION, SAID RECESS BEING DEFINED BY AN UPWARDLY OPEN CYLINDRICAL INTEGRAL BOWL CAULKING FLANGE COASCIALLY SPACEDINWARDLY FROM THE FEMALE-THREADED BOWL PORTION AND CIRCUMFERENTIALLY JOINED TO THE BOWL BELOW THE BOTTOM END OF THE FEMALE THREAD THEREOF, SAID FLANGE BEING COAXIALLY SPACED ALSO FROM THE CYLINDRICAL INTERIOR OF THE COLLAR EXTENSION, A COLLER-TO-BOWL SEAL PROVIDED BY A RESLIENT ELASTOMERIC SLEEVE GASKET, SAID GASKET COMPRISING A CYLINDRICAL BODY, A HEAVY CONTINUOUS INWARD PERIPHERAL LIP PROJECTING FROM THE TOP END OF THE BODY INWARDLY OVER, AND HAVING AN UNDERSURFACE CONTINOUSLY SEALINGLY ENGAGED WITH, A TOP EDGE OF THE SAID CAULKING FLANGE, A SET OF AT LEAST TWO UPWARDLY SLOPED, CIRCUMFERENTIALLY CONTINUOUS, INTERNAL THIN FINS AXIALLY SPACED ON SAID BODY UNDER THE SAID LIP, AND A SET OF AT LEAST TWO UPWARDLY SLOPING, HEAVY CIRCUMFERENTIALLY CONTINUOUS EXTERNAL RIBS AXIALLY SPACED ON SAID BODY, SAID SETS MAKING SEALING CONTACTS RESPECTIVELY WITH THE FLANGE EXTERIOR AND COLLAR INTERIOR CYLINDRICAL SURFACES.
 2. In the combination of claim 1, the said undersurface being upwardly outwardly sloped from said body.
 3. In the combination of claim 2, said internal fins having sections thinner than, and rendering them more flexible than, said external ribs; and having base regions of union with the body axially offset from the base regions of the external ribs.
 4. In the combination of claim 2, said gasket having the topmost said external rib disposed at a location generally opposite said inward lip, top faces of the topmost external rib and of said lip being in effect coplanar extensions of a gasket body top end face, said end face having a substantially continuous circumferential groove.
 5. In the Combination of claim 2, said gasket having thin flexible edge portions on said ribs and fins.
 6. In the combination of claim 5, the base regions, of union with the body, of the fins and ribs being axially offset from opposition to each other; said ribs each having a triangular cross section defined by an upwardly outwardly sloping undersurface and a top surface perpendicular to said body; and said fins each having upwardly inwardly sloping top and bottom surfaces terminating at a blunt fin end; whereby the external ribs permit up and down adjustment of the collar, while the fins assure retention of the sleeve gasket in said recess. 